16 month old with constant runny nose

My son is 16 months old and virtually has had a runny nose since birth.  As an infant, he couldn't sleep flat because he couldn't breathe and would start choking/coughing.  He slept in his car seat for almost 6 months.  He has seen an ENT who thought he had sleep apnea but he doesn't.  Once he started sleeping flat we were told to just keep an eye on him.  He has had a runny nose pretty much his whole life and sounds congested most of the time.  Our pediatrician said he is too young to check for allergies, but i am wondering if that is his problem.  It is time for him to see the ENT again, but I would like some idea what his problem may be before he sees him again.  My son is very big for his age -- he was 31 lbs and 34 inches at 15 months -- and the ENT thinks his weight is the problem.  Our pediatrician assures us he is growing fine since he is also tall.  Anyway, I was wondering if you had any ideas on what could be causing his runny nose and congestion that we could talk about with the ENT.  Thank you so much in advance for any help you can offer.

[rachie204]

My son is 3 1/2 now and has had some very long lasting runny nose **** as well.  My doc said he thinks it is allergies and I have to say  I see a big difference when I have him on allergy meds.  In his behavior and his nose.  He is also a large child...was 9lb 4.8 oz at birth and 22 inches now 47 lbs at age 3 and about 3 1/2 ft tall.  Also my sons nose improved when we replaced the carpet in our home with hardwood.  Maybe this would help your son as well.  best of luck

[leigh1972]

we have an almost 11 month old, and from birth she sounded congested, especially when she ate, her pediatrician says that it is allergies, and she has a touch of asthma.  Our other daughter is the exact same way, but there is 10 years between them.  Our oldest (Amelia) was 10 lbs. and 23 1/2", but Evy was only 7lbs. 10 oz. and 22".  The difference is Evy started growing extremely fast, she is now (almost 11 months old) 31 lbs and 32" tall.  
With Amelia we got rid of the family pet, and we already had nothing but hardwood and tile in our house, so Evy poses a new delimia...there really isn't anything we can do to help her with this.  When she gets to bad I give her a warm bath, or let her play in the bottom of the shower...let the steam help.  If she gets to congested I give her a nebulizer treatment, that helps.  Make sure you keep his nose suctioned out, and keep "Ocean water" on hand to help keep his nasal passages moist.  
We did take Amelia to a allergy specialist, and had her tested, it was very tramatic for her as well as us, 115 sticks on the back!  But we found out exactly what the problems were.  She had to go on shots for awhile, but no need for them now.  Insurance does not pay for the serum, since it is not mass produced, it is for only that indiviual.  It was very expensive.

[ponderousmom]

my daughter is only 3 mos old--and she was born with sinus problems, hers, however, was a result of silent reflux, everything was backing up into her sinuses, she even had a lung aspiration from it--lots of babies have reflux no--dont know why--but if he was a fussy baby you might want to look into it, reflux doesnt always go away--my 10 year old still has it and if i dont keep his bed propped up he gets congested

[MotheringBoys]

I can relate! My 15 mo old is the same way. He was a normal sized baby and is always on the small side now. At 15 mo he weighs 18 lbs. He was diagnosed with silent reflux as an infant but outgrew it. we are in the process of replacing our carpets with hardwood as well. I am concerned as he is on an antibiotic about every 6 wks and it clears up and then a week after he gets off the antibiotic, he has a runny nose again. We couldn't get allergy testing done on him yet as they say he is too young. I have no idea what to do to help him.

[StephieH]

I would say it's allergies, despite what you doctor is saying..My 8 month old had a runny nose for a long time and the ped. argued with me about allergies saying that she was too young, but I had severe allergies as a baby and so did my husband, so I took her to someone else and discovered sure enough she was allergic to dust and dog hair, so I would maybe try a different doctor to see about allergies

[hpp]

After getting a flu like symptoms, I ended up with a constant runny and stuffy nose. It is caused by a persistent virus, I am guessing something like coxsackie B.

For more details, Google: chronicsorethroat wordpress

[hpp]

CONSTANT RUNNY NOSE? DEPRESSION? FATIGUE? APATHY AND ANHEDONIA?

GOOGLE SEARCH on the phrase: "Chronic Sore Throat / Mood Virus"

for more details on this condition.

[athena027]

My son is 3 years old and has a non stop runny nose for the past 4 months. We have gone through a box of kleenex's every other day. It is getting ridiculous. He has had 6 ear infections in the past 4 months as well. The ENT has no idea whats wrong with him, so now we are waiting for children's mercy ENT to make an appt. with us. He is also a big kid at 3, 40 lbs 42 inchs. Maybe it has something to do w/their weight? Who knows, but this runny nose HAS GOT TO STOP!!!